


Love and Care

by larislynn



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Love Confessions, Nightmares, Sharing a Bed, sokka with his hair down, there's only one bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:55:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24885706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larislynn/pseuds/larislynn
Summary: After a scuffle with the Fire Nation, you and the gaang find yourselves taking shelter at a small inn. However, things aren't exactly ideal there, least of all the sleeping situation.Requested by anon on tumblr (Prompt list #12 "You take the bed, you need it more than me." and #24 "That looks like it hurts...")
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Sokka (Avatar)/Reader, The Gaang (Avatar) & Reader
Kudos: 131





	Love and Care

You glanced down at the burn running across your arm and winced as Katara tried to heal it. “I don’t know if this will work, it might’ve been too long.” 

You nodded in response, the burn only fading slightly as she worked her water-bending magic. It healed only barely, and you sighed in defeat. 

“I’m sorry,” she said, “that’s the best I can do. Keeping it submerged in water should heal the pain a bit. We’ll take off in a half hour, so try and get some rest by then.”

Sokka joined you by the water’s edge, his own wounds bandaged up. Gauze was wrapped tightly around his shoulder, but that seemed to be the extent of the damage. You sighed in relief knowing he hadn’t been badly hurt by the latest battle against Azula. 

_“That looks like it hurts…_ ” he trailed off, worry etched on his face. 

“Well, less now than it used to. I should be better in a few days.”

“So Katara couldn’t heal it?”

You shook your head, no. “It was too late by the time she got to it, so it’s going to leave a bit of a scar. It’s alright though, nothing too severe.” 

He looked down, a look of guilt on his face, “This is my fault. I’m sorry, I should have protected you.”

Your eyes scanned his face, “Sokka, this is _not_ your fault. I’m a warrior, I chose to fight in the battle, to do my part in this war. It’s sweet that you want to protect me, but it isn’t up to you.”

“I know it’s not,” he sighed. “I just don’t know what I’d do if I lost any of you.”

“You won’t lose us, we’ll always be here for you.”

“Thank you-” Katara’s voice cut him off.

“Guys! It’s time to go, Aang spotted smoke from a Fire Nation ship!” A panicked look flashed across your face. With your arm still in pain, fighting would be out of the question. “Don’t worry, they’re still a ways off. But we need to leave immediately.” 

Pulling your arm out of the cool lake, you ran towards Appa. Sokka followed close behind, boomerang at the ready. It was hard to climb up onto Appa’s saddle, but with a little effort you had made it. 

“There’s a village not too far from here,” Aang said, pointing to a spot on the map. “It’s right there, see?” 

“No, I don’t, but I trust you, Twinkletoes.” 

“Toph, that was a good one, but now may not be the best time for jokes,” came Sokka’s serious reply.

“I never thought I’d hear you say that, Sokka,” you said, as Aang guided Appa into the air.

“Well, the Fire Nation isn’t too far behind us, and you’re injured,” he stuttered for a second, “I mean, most of us are, at least a little, so I don’t think it’s the best time for another battle,” he finished quickly, a light blush on his cheeks. 

“Alright, Captain Boomerang, if you’re so concerned for _all_ of us, why don’t you steer Appa. Aang is falling asleep at the reins,” Toph interjected sarcastically. 

By the time your group neared the small village, dusk was setting. A small inn sat on the outskirts of town. It was nothing fancy, but it seemed like a safe place to spend the night. In an effort to conceal the fact that Aang was the Avatar, Appa landed a mile away from the village, where he was hidden in a small cave. 

Once your disguises were properly in place, you began the trek towards the inn. The evening was cool yet muggy. It was as though a pressure was on your chest, the air around you almost suffocating.

“Hey, Aang, Katara, could you guys make the air less humid?”

“Sure Sokka,” Katara answered with a smile. Bending the water out of the air, she collected it into one large water drop. In one swift motion, she thrust it forward, splashing it onto Sokka. 

“Everytime I try to suggest something… “ he muttered, trailing off. You couldn’t help but laugh at his misfortune, but nodded to Aang to dry him off anyways. In a swish of air, the water was back in the atmosphere, and Sokka was no longer completely soaked. 

“You guys might want to cool it with the bending,” Toph warned, “we’re almost there.” 

Not long after, the gabled roof of the inn came into view, and you subconsciously made sure your burn was covered. Even though you had a cover story, calling any attention to yourself or the group seemed like a bad idea. 

“Alright,” you said, turning to face the others, “we only have a few coins left after a certain _someone_ decided to buy blubbered seal jerky instead of supplies.” 

Sokka crossed his arms defensively, “Yeah Toph, what do you have to say for yourself?”

“We all know it was you,” she shot back, crossing her arms too.

“Hey, blubbered seal jerky is good, okay?”

“It was good,” you agreed, trying to redirect the conversation. “but now we only have enough money for two rooms.”

“I can share a room with Katara,” Aang volunteered enthusiastically. 

“Well I’m joining you, Twinkletoes. Sokka snores too much.”

“I do not,” he replied indignantly.

“You kind of do,” you answered with a chuckle. “Well, I guess that’s settled then, let’s head inside.”

The lobby was small, and not well decorated. Old, yellowed wallpaper was peeling in the corners of the room. There was a musty odor that made your nose crinkle, and you exchanged a brief look with your friends. 

Walking up to the desk, you cleared your throat. Flashing a small smile at the receptionist, you held out your coins. “Hi there, we’d like two rooms please. One with three beds and one with two beds.”

“Lucky for you, we have two rooms open! The first room has three cots, but the second one has only one bed.” 

You felt a bit nervous at that, but pressed on. “Are you sure there isn’t a second empty cot or bed somewhere?”

“Young lady,” the elderly gentleman replied, “I’ve been running this inn for fifty years, I know how many beds we have.” 

“Well, looks like we’ll have to figure something out ourselves,” you said, turning back to the group. The innkeeper led you to your room, and as the door swung open you breathed a sigh of relief. It looked recently remodeled, and there was no musty smell either. 

Once he left, Sokka turned to you, _“You take the bed, you need it more than me.”_

“No, you shouldn’t have to sleep on the floor. It doesn’t seem comfortable.” You looked down, and knew that the hardwood floor would just cause more damage to the wound in his shoulder.

“Exactly! You’re injured, it wouldn’t be good for your arm,” he refuted.

“You’re injured too! I don’t think the floor will exactly help your shoulder,” you answered.

“Well I guess there’s only one thing to do,” he replied, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, “would you be okay with sharing the bed?” 

Your heartbeat fluttered you anxiously, but you nodded yes anyways. There weren’t any other options.

When the time to head to bed came around, you carefully crawled onto the mattress. To your surprise it was just right, and you felt a bit more comfortable. Still, you made sure to lay at the edge of the bed.

A moment later, Sokka climbed into bed, his hair down around his shoulders. Once again, you found your heartbeat skipping, but for a different reason this time. “Well, I guess we should get some sleep,” you said, voice just above a whisper.

“Yeah, we should, but are you alright? You sound tense.”

“Me? Tense? No! My, uh, arm just hurts,” you answered quickly.

“I could get Katara, see if she can heal it a bit more,” he offered.

“Oh, no it’s alright. Goodnight.” With that you rolled over to face the wall, blowing out your bedside candle as you did so.

“Alright then, goodnight.” 

Soon enough you felt yourself drifting off, and you fell into a pleasant sleep. It was the middle of the night when you thought you heard a scratching sound at the window. Your eyes snapped open, and a feeling of fear settled over you like a blanket. You tried to sit up, but something seemed to be pinning you to the mattress. At that moment, a blaze of fire passed by your head. 

You woke up, a jolt of panic rushing through your body. Taking a look around the room, everything seemed to be in place, and definitely no Fire Nation intruders. But there _was_ something holding you down. As your eyes adjusted to the darkened room, you realized you had rolled closer to the center of the bed in your sleep. Sokka was sprawled across his side of the mattress, but also had an arm draped protectively over your waist.

You knew trying to move would wake him up, so instead you resigned to doing nothing. As you began to slowly roll over to face the wall, Sokka started to mumble in his sleep. “It’s okay, you’re safe,” he said sleepily, “go back to bed y/n, I love you.” 

This time you did sit up, sure you had misunderstood him. “Wait, what?”

He opened his eyes slowly, realization dawning on him. “Uh, what, nothing, I didn’t say anything. Nope, not me.”

“It’s alright Sokka, I heard what you said.”

“Oh,” he replied quietly, “I can leave if you want. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to tell you like this, or to really tell you at all,” he trailed off as he began to get out of bed. Your hand reached out and grabbed his, stopping him.

“I wasn’t planning on telling you either, at least not until the war was over but I,” you glanced down, feeling nervous, “I love you too.”

His eyes met yours, asking an unspoken question, and you nodded. Your lips connected and you smiled into the kiss. It wasn’t the confession you had always planned, but that’s what made it so perfect.

**Author's Note:**

> This was requested anonymously on tumblr! Requests are open, more details on my tumblr @thenewlarislynn! I'm currently in the process of planning another multi-chapter fic, so be sure to stay tuned for updates! As always kudos and comments are appreciated! <3


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